The present disclosure relates to a signal processing apparatus and an endoscope system.
In the medical field, an endoscope system is used for observing internal portions of a subject. The endoscope typically inserts an insertion unit having a thin and long shape into a subject such as a patient, emits illumination light supplied by a light source apparatus from a distal end of the insertion unit, and receives reflected light of the illumination light by an image sensor, thereby capturing an in-vivo image. The in-vivo image captured by the image sensor of the endoscope undergoes predetermined image processing by a signal processing apparatus (processor) of the endoscope system, and thereafter is displayed on a display of the endoscope system. A user such as a doctor observes an internal organ of the subject based on the in-vivo image displayed on the display.
In endoscopic inspection, since various endoscopes are appropriately used in accordance with the purpose of observation and an observed region, a plurality of endoscopes is used in combination in some cases. An endoscope system includes a processor, a display, and a recording apparatus as a set for individual types of endoscopes. Therefore, in a case of using a plurality of endoscopes in combination, a plurality of sets of processors, displays, and recording apparatuses is installed in accordance with each of the endoscopes. This results in complication of a wiring structure among the apparatuses and a necessity to ensure a wide area for installation, leading to enlargement of the entire system. In order to simplify the configuration of the entire system, there is a proposed configuration in which two processors are connected to each other, and one of the processors performs as a parent device output of image information to a display or a recording apparatus, thereby sharing the display or the recording apparatus by a plurality of processors (for example, refer to JP 2003-038432 A).